Retire Tomorrow - Will I miss Work? (conversation, state, relative)
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I retired 11 days ago and don't miss work. I will probably miss some people and be glad to not have to deal with others. The paycheck is replaced with a pension and SS, so that's a wash.
Being free from having to do things and having to go somewhere is wonderful!
Let's see how you feel after 11 weeks ,11 months , 11 years . Nothing to do and no where to go can get to be a drag.
Let's see how you feel after 11 weeks ,11 months , 11 years . Nothing to do and no where to go can get to be a drag.
I feel sorry for you, if that is how you view (or are experiencing) retirement. All of my retired friends have things to do and places to go. Today, I have a music lesson at Noon and then an orientation at a local health club that I just joined. If I didn't have those two midday events I would be skiing. After I get over the Holidays, I plan to expand on my hobbies.
I plan to play at my church's midweek service. Volunteer with the National Forest Service. Join a local retiree club and my list will go on and on in time. Retirement is what you make of it.
I was "retired" in my mid-50s and I found that I mostly missed the social environment of working with very smart people.
So I returned to work at age 61 and loved every minute.
Now at 66, I'm again retired but now I make an effort to stay connected. Luckily, most of my friends are now retired so we have frequent meetings.
I don't think people value you less if you don't work. But some get jealous.
I always thought it was ironic that those who want to retire can't afford it, but those that can afford it don't want to retire.
tend to agree with Vision. I retired at 63.5 and do miss the interaction and such with my work friends. But I love the freedom I have now in my day to day life.
Retiring in my 50s would have been too early. 63 was about right for me. I spent the first 3 months scouring my house and cleaning out everything I could. Then I traveled on dream vacations and to visit family. Now I am at loose ends and expect I will enroll in the local university for single classes.
You can only know your own circumstances as to whether retiring at mid 50s is right for you.
a. My dad retired at 58 and loved every minute of it. Spent his time doing the things he loved and wished he'd had time to do while working. Gardening, fishing, traveling.
b. My FIL is a workaholic. Retired at 64 and promptly got another job. Worked there several years and then "retired" and found another job. He's now on his third or forth post retirement job. Instead of being retired, he works as many or more hours as before. It's hard to get him to even take a few days off to see his grandchildren. Does he need the money? Heck no. He is the person who on his death bed WILL say "I wish I'd spent more time at the office."
I'm fast approaching the age my dad was when he retired and wish I could do as him. But I'm afraid the economy killed a big chunk of my retirement and I will have to work longer until I drop.
So I plan to retire mañana still in my 50's but I am wondering if I will miss working. Making social connections not through work? Do people value you less if you don't work? What has been others experience?
For context, I've been working as a Consultant for an Engineering company and have worked all over the world and I don't know what a 40 hour work week is.
Congratulations!
I will be doing that in a few years too, God willing. I'm not worried at all about missing my job, but I can understand that some people are. It sounds to me like you won't really know until you are retired for a while. The nice thing is, if you miss the social connections, there are plenty of things you can do about that, like volunteering or even taking on some part time work.
My job isn't bad, but I can't wait for the freedom to work on the things I want, when and if I want. I also won't miss the "politics" and the terrible commute. If I don't get enough social interaction, I plan on getting involved in something I care about like an animal shelter or nature center.
I wish you happiness in your retirement and will be interested in hearing about your new experiences.
Sounds like you are too busy working to have any hobbies. But one part of your work you should be happy to get rid of - air travel. It's getting to be too much of a hassle. I don't even want to get on a plane to go on a vacation.
There must be some activity that you always wanted to do but work got in the way .... now's the time to do it.
Thanks, I'm leaving without any reservations and look forward to the new adventure.
Why don't you become a teacher and take advantage of those short hours, long vacations and golden perks you've talked about? It'll keep you busy for a couple hours a day anyway. After all the curriculum is done for you.
For the record, I retired, officially, July 1 although I was off much of last year on extended sick leave.
I don't miss one single thing about it. I thought I'd miss the kids but, surprisingly, don't. I do continue to teach Hunter Safety as a volunteer, to both adults and younger.
Why don't you become a teacher and take advantage of those short hours, long vacations and golden perks you've talked about? It'll keep you busy for a couple hours a day anyway. After all the curriculum is done for you.
For the record, I retired, officially, July 1 although I was off much of last year on extended sick leave.
I don't miss one single thing about it. I thought I'd miss the kids but, surprisingly, don't. I do continue to teach Hunter Safety as a volunteer, to both adults and younger.
I never desired to be a teacher (partially because of the low pay and I won't mention the rest) and I did say that teaching is not an easy job....but not many teachers work 60-80 hours a week all year in multiple countries (many dangerous) like I've been doing...currently I work at a mine site in Peru and get picked up at 454 in the morning and get back to my apartment at 1830 for 6 days/wk. To me, yes teaching is short hours, long vacations, and golden perks...do you not think so?
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